More about growing thyme

You can either sow thyme seeds, buy a thyme plant,
or (if you have a friend with a thyme plant you really like) divide an
established plant.

I prefer to buy thymes
because thyme seeds are tiny and it's easier to place the plants where
you want them that way, and there's a chance of an odd growth pattern if
you don't divide a thyme plant right.

If you're planting a thyme lawn
or using creeping thyme between paver stones, buying thyme seed is the
most economical way to go.

As with any new
planting, keep the ground slightly moist until your seedling or growing
thyme plant is established, then water once a week or so as needed. Do
not water if it has rained recently.

In hotter
areas, it's best to prune your thyme plants in the spring, especially if the plant is getting leggy. This pruning encourages a compact, bushy growing habit.

My online friend Jacki has a good resource (and a different take on) growing thyme over at her website Drought Smart Plants.
(link will open a new window so you can take a look)

I especially
recommend her website to Canadians, as she has a good selection of thyme
plants that she can ship to those of you who live there.

Problems when growing thyme

Do not over-water -- this leads to mildew and root
rot. Once your growing thyme is established, it doesn't need
fertilizing, watering more than once a week or so (unless your area is
in an extreme drought -- thyme leaves will turn brownish when it is too
dry) or anything else. Leave it alone!

Ants seem to like thymes,
and will place their nests underneath their roots, but this doesn't seem
to harm the plant. Just wear gloves when harvesting if you're allergic to
ants.

Bees, butterflies and other beneficial insects also like thymes,
and growing one nearby can help when you're having a problem with pests or poor pollination
in other plants.

Growing thyme: Notable varieties of thyme

Many types of thyme are hard to tell apart, but there are some culinary thymes that are distinctive and worth growing:

Caraway thyme (Thymus herba-barona)

A creeping thyme used a lot as a ground cover,
this plant smells like caraway seed and has pink flowers that bloom
in early spring.

It only gets about 4 inches tall but it spreads out
very fast, and is good to plant on slopes or other large areas that you need
filled in quickly.

It can be used as a substitute for caraway and is good
cooked with beef or in herb breads.

English thyme (Thymus vulgaris)

This has a dozen different names, including Garden thyme, common thyme, German thyme, and so on. There
are many cultivars and varieties of English thyme with variations in
color (such as Silver "Argentus" thyme) and flavor (Italian oregano
thyme). But these all pretty much grow the same way, and can be
substituted for common thyme in any recipe.

English
thymes bloom in mid-spring and have pink flowers. These varieties are
upright and grow to about a foot tall. They have a round growth pattern
and are nice growing in borders, low dividers, and in edging.

Lemon thyme
(Thymus citriodorus)

While this grows and looks much like English
thyme, lemon thyme has a distinct lemon smell and flavor, and the leaves
are often lighter green and wider than English thyme.

Lemon
thyme is great in fish and chicken dishes, and can be used to
substitute for lemon juice or lemon zest in recipes. Although it only
grows to about a foot tall, this can be sheared into
formal shapes and used in small hedges or knot gardens.

Thymus serpyllum

Growing to less than an inch tall with a spreading aspect, this has a strong
herbal or lemony fragrance and either pink, white, lavender or magenta
flowers, depending on variety. It's wonderful for putting between
pavers, around rocks, or to replace lawns in dry areas.

It's good in
stew, salads, and vegetable dishes, especially with zucchini and
eggplant. It can also be used as an herbal tea.

I've
found this (often wrongly) listed as elfin thyme, mother-of-thyme, wild
thyme, and Breckland thyme ... so make sure you have the right
scientific name (Thymus serpyllum) if this is the plant you want to try growing.

None of the
thymes are poisonous, but woolly thyme has a odd texture, and many of
the more ornamental thymes don't have much flavor, so taste a leaf before buying to make sure it's what you want.

Harvesting thyme

To harvest your growing thyme, just cut off the
amount you want. If you want to dry thyme for use later, the best time
to cut it for drying is before it flowers, in the early spring.

Drying
thyme is as simple as cutting a few small holes in the sides of a paper
bag, then putting your fresh thyme sprigs in the bag. If you close the
bag and leave it in a dry, dark place such as a pantry or cupboard, the leaves will dry in a few weeks. Strip the leaves off the stems and store
them in a sealed container in a dark place for best flavor.

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